


rosemary for remembrance

by flashandsubstance



Series: pray you love, remember [2]
Category: Justice League & Justice League Unlimited (Cartoons), Justice League (2017)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Dimension Travel, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jason Todd is Dead, Lord Batman is DCEU Batman, Post-Episode: s02e11-12 A Better World, bruce needs so much therapy wtf
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-08-29 19:47:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 942
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16750456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flashandsubstance/pseuds/flashandsubstance
Summary: What Bruce needs is a fresh start.So he gets one.





	rosemary for remembrance

**Author's Note:**

> i’ve had the idea that lord batman is the dceu batman for a while, and now y’all are getting to read it! this installment is less obliquely batflash than the previous fic, but if i ever write a third part, it won’t even be subtle tbh

There is nothing left for him in Gotham.

He’s done all he can, spent every last drop of his money in rehabilitation.

Gotham is fine. 

He is not needed. Not in Gotham. 

There is no one left for him, not in Gotham, nor anywhere else in the world.

-

He finds a universe where he died. 

There’s no Justice League, which is good, and Alfred hasn’t informed the world of Bruce Wayne’s death, which is good.

He needs a fresh start.

This is it.

-

Before he leaves, he sorts out his business. Amends his will. Wayne Enterprise goes to Lucius.

He takes one last trip to a grave in central city.

He brings with him seeds. 

Rosemary, for remembrance.

So that Wally West will always have flowers on his grave. 

So that Wally West will always be remembered.

-

He does not take much with him. 

He brings his files, his suit. He brings schematics and plans that he deems necessary.

But most importantly, he brings keepsakes.

Photographs of him and Alfred, of his parents. Of the Justice League before it all went wrong.

His mother’s jewelry, and the copy of Alice in Wonderland that he used to read with his parents before bedtime.

He takes the painting of his parents from above the fire out of its frame, placing it carefully in a storage tube.

A ring, with a lightning bolt insignia.  _ His _ ring.

So that he never forgets.

-

The new Alfred is understandably wary of him.

He’s not wrong to be wary. 

Bruce knows that he’s cold, but he can’t afford to get attached. 

(He can’t lose anyone he loves again.)

He learns some things about this new universe.

He has a son, who refuses to speak to the man who has taken his father’s place- and his face. This hurts more than it should.

Superman exists in this world. This scares him more than it should.

Wally doesn’t exist in this world. Bruce doesn’t know why.

-

He becomes Batman.

He becomes what is needed of him.

He tells Alfred the bare minimum of why he left, and lets imagination fill in the gaps.

Leaving was easy, he says. There was nothing for me to stay for.

Alfred simply gives him the space he needs.

That need for space is abruptly interrupted when a boy decides to jack the Batmobile’s tires.

-

He has a son.

He has a son!

Jason makes his life worthwhile, filling the hole in his heart with the exuberance only a child with the whole world ahead of him can produce.

He has a reason to smile as he leaps across the familiar rooftops of the city he loves. 

Wally told him to take care of himself, and in caring for Jason, Bruce can feel light returning to his life.

Maybe he’ll finally be truly content.

-

The fragile dream of love shatters in his hands.

Jason goes to Ethiopia.

Bruce is too late when Jason truly needs him.

The Joker would get what he deserves. Bruce would not let his son, the one thing that made his life worthwhile lie unquiet.

There is nothing to trace back to him when they find the Joker beaten into a coma in his cell.

Tears never came easily to Bruce Wayne, but he cries for Jason Todd.

His beloved son.

-

Letters scattered on the desk. Newspapers. All scrawled in red ink.

It’s his fault.

It’s his fault.

It’s his fault.

-

Metropolis is destroyed.

Another Superman taking justice into his own hands.

He can’t let the world repeat itself.

The Justice Lords will never be created.

He will destroy the Lords before they even come together,

-

He fails.

This Superman– he’s done nothing wrong.

Not yet.

He may be too dangerous to let live, but Bruce can’t kill him either.

It’s better to keep him under control.

Puzzle pieces fall into place when he realizes what the appearance of Diana means.

He must create the Justice League.

He must bring them together once more.

-

Superman is dead. (He has a plan for that.)

Wonder Woman he has access to if need be.

J’onn doesn’t seem to exist on earth, nor does Shayera.

John exists, but he’s not a Lantern. Not yet.

Wally– well, he already knows he won’t find Wally. Not in this universe.

But there’s another speedster, one Barry Allen. He’s young, and almost as green as Bruce remembers Wally being. He’s full of potential. 

The king of Atlantis, Arthur Curry, also seems a potential member. His raw strength and the resources at his disposal would be an invaluable asset.

And Victor Stone. This is one case he doesn’t know much about, but he’ll take what he can get.

-

He knows that Darkseid has set his sights on earth when the Parademon attacks begin. He first catches sight of them in an attack by the Scarecrow, writing them off as the figments of a fear-addled brain.

But they’re real.

And as the attacks increase in number, Bruce finds that he may have need of the Justice League sooner than he anticipated.

He knows that he will need the Justice League if he wants to stand any chance against Darkseid and Apokolips.

-

Superman–  _ Clark  _ is alive, and the relief that brings feels like a betrayal.

He’s gotten attached.

To this Diana’s firm yet kind manner.

To this Clark’s devotion to his friends and family.

To Barry’s enthusiasm, and his readiness to learn.

To Arthur’s honest abrasiveness.

To Victor’s level head.

To Alfred, who, despite his initial cold demeanor, has warmed up to him.

They  _ care _ about him.

In a way the Lords never did, unconditionally.

And Bruce? Bruce cares about them too.

**Author's Note:**

> cone talk to me! i’m @cryptid-batman on tumblr


End file.
